Credit Proofing Charity Assets Part III Recruitment of Directors By Mark S. Anshan In the last part of this series, we discussed the independence and authority of the separate corporations and balancing that fundamental principle with the “control” by the parent corporation. The ability to maintain independence and ensure that the corporations within the “family” […]

Donation of Space Yields no Charitable Receipt By Arthur Drache, C.M. Q.C. While we have no firm data on the point, out experience suggests that there are literally thousands of small registered charities which operate out of private homes. Typically one or more of the founders handles much of the mechanics of operating the organization […]

WE ARE A LOT LIKE OUR NEIGHBOURS NEIGHBORS by C. Yvonne Chenier Q.C. Recently I had opportunity to attend an American Bar Association Section of Taxation 2014 meeting with many of my American colleagues who also practice what we call “charity and not-for profit law” and they call “tax exempt organization law.” After being immersed […]

Securing legal and operation nexus between Canadian charities and overseas counterparts Mark S. Anshan In an earlier article we discussed the means by which parent non profits can maintain control of subsidiary non profits as part of the credit proofing approach to protecting assets. The same principles and solutions can be applied to foreign charities […]

The Dire Consequences of Failing to ‘Continue’ to the New Federal Not-for-profit Corporations Act By Alexandra Tzannidakis, LL.B. Federal not-for-profit corporations take heed: you have a deadline of October 17, 2014, by which to switch over (or “continue”) to the new Canada Not-for-profit Corporations Act. The changeover period has been running since 2011 and this […]

When Opportunity Knocks Should You Even Open the Door? By: Adam Aptowitzer Charities are like any other actors in society, opportunities arise and they should be considered. Some will be discarded and others will be pursued. For charities though, the evaluation of opportunities must be made with the additional consideration of the constraints placed upon […]

Corporate Art Collections By Joel Secter Have you ever walked into a corporate office or professional firm only to find yourself admiring the art? Though some businesses rent art to avoid the capital outlay required to purchase it,[1] many take advantage of the capital cost allowance (CCA) to build their own private collection. Hopefully, a […]

NPO Rental Income by Arthur Drache, C.M. Q.C. A recent CRA ruling [1] dealt with the question as to whether the rental of vacation properties to non-members would jeopardize the tax exempt status of an entity described in paragraph 149(1)(l) of the Income Tax Act. Paragraph 149(1)(l) provides an exemption from Part I tax for […]

Not-for-Profit Report is a Call to Action By: Adam Aptowitzer For many years, increasingly stringent regulation of the charity sector pushed oversight of the not-for-profit sector off the list of priorities. There was not even any good data on the number of not-for-profit organizations (NPOs) in existence, because the CRA did not compel them to […]

Disbursment Quota Presents Unique Challenges for Charitable Trusts By Alexandra Tzannidakis, LL.B. The Income Tax Act requires every registered charity (including organizations, private foundations, and public foundations) to meet a disbursement quota every year or risk losing its registration. Of the various structures that can hold charitable registration, charitable trusts may face particular obstacles in […]